Doppler-echocardiographic assessment of valvular regurgitation in healthy young subjects

The study covers 300 clinically healthy, randomly selected young subjects, aged 17 to 21 years. The incidence and characteristic features of the valvular regurgitations are assayed by means of pulsed and continuous transthoracic Doppler echocardiography. Valvular insufficiency is registered in total of 198 cases (66%). Regurgitation of single valve is observed in 122 cases (61%), regurgitation of two valves - in 70 (36%) and three valves - in six (3%). Right-sided regurgitations (tricuspid, pulmonic and a combination of both) are detected in 156 subjects, and left-sided (mitral and/or aortic) in twenty-six of which only one regurgitation of the aortic valve. There is a definite tendency of the first two to prevail at a ratio 6:1. A constellation of various anatomical and physiological factors are considered as a likely underlying cause. Whenever atrio-ventricular valves are examined (the mitral one in particular), it is necessary that the regurgitation jet involves over 50% of systole in order to avoid hyperdiagnostics and the so-called 'Doppler's disease'. 14 refs., 1 tab., 2 figs. (author)